❗️Russian troops liberated the village of Stepanovka in the Donetsk People's Republic, the Russian Defense Ministry announced

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🇷🇺🪖More statements from the Russian Defense Ministry's weekly briefing on the special military operation's progress:

🔸 Ukraine lost over 4,715 soldiers during the week in the Russia's Battlegroup Yug area of responsibility.

🔸 Ukraine lost over 3,235 militants during the week and five tanks, including a Leopard tank. in the Russia's Battlegroup Tsentr area of responsibility.

🔸 Ukraine lost over 960 troops during the week in the Russia's Battlegroup Vostok area of responsibility.

🔸 41 Ukrainian servicemen surrendered during the week.

🔸 Ukraine lost over 3,435 militants during the week and three tanks in the Russia's Battlegroup Zapad area of responsibility.

🔸 Russian aviation shot down 10 Hammer guided bomb, 24 HIMARS missiles and 449 Ukrainian drones.

🔸 During the week Ukrainian forces lost up to 465 militants and four warehouses in the Russia's Battlegroup Dnepr area of responsibility.

🔸 Ukraine lost over 2,760 militants during the week and 24 tanks in the Russia's Battlegroup Sever area of responsibility.

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📹 THROWBACK: Vivek Ramaswamy's notorious anti-Palestinian comments

Vivek Ramaswamy, Donald Trump's pick to run the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) alongside Elon Musk, alongside Elon Musk, supports Israel's genocide in Gaza and its attempts to obliterate Hezbollah.

"Do I stand for Israel's right to defend itself? Absolutely, I do. I think that Iranian incursion, the Arab states, Turkiye, and Israel have plenty of an interest to make sure that doesn't happen," he said in a 2023 interview.

✍️ "Israel has an absolute right to defend itself and to pursue Israel-First policies, just as we should pursue America-First policies here. That’s consistent with the original Zionist vision and also George Washington’s vision for America. Calls for vague US involvement without clear objectives will lead us to a no-win war that will be bad for Israel and bad for the US," he wrote on X in October 2023.

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What are EU rapid deployment forces and goals of upcoming drills?

Fifteen EU member states and over 1,700 soldiers are set to participate in the European Union's second Live Military Exercise (LIVEX) in Bergen, Germany, from November 25 to December 10, according to the European External Action Service (EEAS). The exercise is part of the EU's Strategic Compass plan, which is to create a European Union Rapid Deployment Capacity (EU RDC) to strengthen the bloc's security and defense capabilities by 2030.

What is EU RDC?

▫️designed for rapid crisis response outside the EU, it was introduced in 2022;

▫️created to enable swift deployment for crisis management;

▫️consists of up to 5,000 troops, including land, air, and maritime components.

What is the purpose of the drills?

🔘 An integral part of the wider MILEX24, the drills are intended to test the interoperability of the EU’s rapid deployment forces to prepare them for potential high-intensity conflicts.

🔘 The maneuvers will be conducted under the command of Eurocorps and the German Army Command.

What will the drills involve?

◽️ Common operation will be tested at three command and staff stages: strategic, tactical, and operational.

◽️ The drills will involve the field deployment of a battlegroup comprising mountain infantry, a light/reinforced infantry unit, medical parts of the Medical Task Force (MED TF), and Austria’s Combat Service Support Battalion.

◽️ Austria, Belgium, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Hungary, Croatia, Ireland, Luxembourg, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, and Sweden will participate in the multinational maneuvers.

The EU held its previous live exercises in 2023 in Spain, citing the perceived security threat from Russia. President Vladimir Putin dismissed these claims as baseless, calling them a tactic to mislead the public and justify increased military spending.

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